Got some stuff to get rid of this season? I found this amazing blog that lists where your goods can go, for the good of someone else. My favorite places are usually the Salvation Army or a local place I volunteer at, the Catholic Worker House, depending on the stuff I’m getting rid of. There […]

Wouldn’t it be great to grow your own food in your apartment? Seems like I got stung by the gardening bee and have been adding to my balcony garden of goodies. I remember learning about New York’s urban gardening where a plot of dirt is hard to come by so folks use the rooftop of […]

I found this interesting article (requires free registration) about one medical school that changed their grading system to pass/fail and the results are encouraging. Take a look at how students rate their psychological health, their satisfaction with the quality of their medical education and their personal life. So do you think DMU should also adopt […]

So as I sit here and stare at the delicious collection of cherry tomatoes collected from our neighbor’s plant (we’re plant-sitting for the week), I’m thinking Easy Breezy Pasta for lunch. This is a super simple recipe to use up tomatoes: Combine 2 handfuls (or more) of cherry tomatoes + oodles of whole garlic cloves […]

Lookie at what I found, coupons online! I’m going to admit our past-time favorite moments is going to include finding great deals in the Val-Pak mail and online deals. It is so fun hunting for bargains that it really should be a sport. And if you cringe at calling this a sport, imagine how I […]

CelebrAsian was Saturday. I look forward to this time of year because it’s when all of the Asian people come out and you can eat Asian food and see traditional performances from all the Asian culture. There were vendors representing Thai, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar and so much more.

Well, technically, it’s held at the Des Moines Art Center, just a few blocks down the road, and taught by visiting artist Tracy Duran, M.F.A. This was an amazing class coordinated by Gary Hoff, D.O., FACOI, FACC, and it is available to all DMU students. Being that I never graduated from stick figure drawings, this […]

Seems like second year students are hibernating in the library sitting in a deep trance with their face stuck in their COMLEX or First Aid USMLE books. What are those books anyway? Oh dear, so soon? Yes, it is board studying season! So what is everybody’s technique in preparing to study for their national board […]

In recognition of Bone Marrow Month, I felt it would be appropriate to share my friend’s story about his battle with leukemia. He’s a strapping young man and was diagnosed with leukemia at the age of 25, just two years ago. When I first heard about this, I went straight to the internet to learn […]

There’s a special membership deal at www.audible.com (or at least there was when I last visited) for books on audio! What a concept. Not only do I get the chance to catch up on all the books people are talking about, I can listen to it while at the gym, or when laying in bed when my […]

Gross! Stick this in your file of ‘things we shouldn’t have to tell you’ and note it! I’ve witnessed people doing strange things with their eye contacts…by strange I mean sticking it in their mouth to moisten it and putting it back in their eye! I’ve seen my friends do this – yes, even medical […]

Last year, I celebrated Earth Hour with friends at my apartment playing the card game Spoons in the dark. We started off with a social yoga-ing, enjoying the relaxing evening under the starry sky and dug right into all of the delectable foods they all brought over. We lit some candles and pulled out our […]

I have tons of fun stories from our spring break trip to El Salvador. This first one is about my first ambulance ride. On March 15, the El Salvadorians had their presidential election and our team was asked to stick around just in case a riot broke out and first aid was required. Most of […]

I used Priceline for the first time recently to bid on a 3-star hotel in San Jose, CA with a $99 room that was $79 on www.hotels.com. I took a chance to bid for a hotel in the San Jose area at $65. I didn’t have much to lose if I lost the bid […]

For our pre-departure meeting, our global health group met at El Salvador Del Mundo, 2901 6th Ave. in Des Moines. And if this is what I have to anticipate to eat when I’m in El Salvador during spring break, then I am all in! The price is just right and the food was so delicious. […]

I’m so glad I went to have lunch with Governor Branstad (DMU’s president) today. He absorbed all of our concerns ranging from requests for additional printers, concerns about our laptops and parking issues, among other topics. You just had to be there to hear it all! I highly recommend students attending one of these lunch […]

We call all three of our guinea pigs our babies. They are in so many ways – they eat, poop, whine & sleep (repeat daily). But they are a joy to have around the apartment. Our first concern moving out to Des Moines was finding apartments that accept small animals. We wanted to be near […]

What a joy! I think I found my new favorite restaurant in downtown Des Moines. The place is called Centro (pronounced Chen-tro) and they serve pastas and pizzas and everything I like. I started off with the steamed mussels appetizer which tastes like it’s bathed in butter blended with sweet roma tomatoes. Oh so juicy and […]

I am going to El Salvador for a medical service trip with 13 other DMU students and oodles of supporting faculty and community members. This is DMU’s second time going to El Salvador. Last year, they served about 2500 people in the community. I am so excited about this opportunity! There are many opportunities available […]

It’s been very hard to catch up on leisurely reading with school and that’s why I took advantage of my winter break to pick up a book. There were a few challenges, however, in deciding what book I think I can actually enjoy and finish reading. So how did I decide? First thing in mind […]